Culinary nutrition is reshaping how dietitians connect food, culture and science – and Sharon Croxford is leading the way. An award-winning academic, chef and dietitian, Sharon shares her journey from Istanbul cooking schools to Australian classrooms, and how she’s helping redefine the role of food and culture in dietetic practice. Tune in for a thought-provoking conversation on this evolving field.
Hosted by Brooke Delfino
Biography
Sharon Croxford is an award-winning academic with 30 years’ APD experience. Sharon also trained as a chef, wanting to bridge the gap between nutrition and dietetics, and food and cooking. She lived between London and Istanbul for more than a decade, opening a cooking school focusing on Ottoman and Turkish cuisine. Sharon returned to Australia and has focused on research on dietary acculturation and bringing food and cooking, and culinary nutrition, into nutrition and dietetics curricula. She is a published academic and popular writer, photographer, and a mum.
In this episode, we discuss:
- What makes culinary nutrition distinct from traditional approaches to food prep and cooking skills
- Key competencies and pathways into the field
- Strategies to understand diverse food cultures
- The importance of curiosity and lifelong learning in dietetics
Additional resources
- Click here to find out more about Pauls Zymil.
- Connect with Sharon on LinkedIn or on Instagram @sharon_Croxford
- Click here to download a copy of the Interprofessional Framework for Culinary Nutrition and Culinary Medicine Competencies
- Learn more about ACU culinary nutrition short courses and the Graduate Certificate in Culinary Science. Join the ACU Easter Rome and Italian food and culture program from 2-11 April 2026 and live like the Romans do for a week or so! Learn more here.
Additional reading:
- Croxford, S., Stirling, E., MacLaren, J., McWhorter, J. W., et al. (2024). Culinary Medicine or Culinary Nutrition? Defining Terms for Use in Education and Practice. Nutrients, 16(5), 603.
- Hildebrand C. A., Artz K. E., Dollinger B., Dotson K., et al. (2025). Defining the evolving field of culinary medicine across multiple domains. Frontiers in Nutrition, 12.Â
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